File:Ekranoplan_A-90_Orlyonok_-_edit.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
ground-effect vehicle
Sign in to saveAlso known as ekranoplane, wing-in-ground-effect vehicule, flarecraft, sea skimmer, wing-in-surface-effect ship, WISE, ekranoplan, WIG
machine to fly in air just above sea or ground using air-surfice reaction
~30 min read
Encyclopedic overview
Ekranoplan A-90 Orlyonok A ground-effect vehicle (GEV), also called a wing-in-ground-effect (WIGE or WIG), ground-effect craft/machine (GEM), wingship, flarecraft, surface effect vehicle or ekranoplan (Russian: экранопла́н – "screenglider"), is a vehicle that makes use of the ground effect, the aerodynamic interaction between a moving wing and the stationary surface below (land or water). Typically, it glides over a level surface (usually over water). Some models can operate over any flat area such as a lake or flat plains similar to a hovercraft. The term Ground-Effect Vehicle originally referred to any craft utilizing ground effect, including what later became known as hovercraft, in patent descriptions during the 1950s. However, this term came to exclude air-cushion vehicles or hovercraft. GEVs do not include racecars utilizing ground-effect for increasing downforce.
Ground effect
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “ground-effect vehicle” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.